Maybe I should call it the WTF of the day. "
Man accused of smuggling king cobras in potato chip cans". Complete with photograph.
Just your typical wildlife smuggling case. Note that a king cobra of that size is a juvenile. Adults are around 10 feet long or more, with the record being over 18 feet.
The three king cobra snakes — each about two feet (just over half a
meter) long — were found in March when Customs and Border Protection
officers inspected a package that was mailed from Hong Kong, prosecutors
said. There were also three albino Chinese soft-shelled turtles in the
package, authorities said.
Federal agents removed the cobras but delivered the turtles to Franco's home in Monterey Park.
They followed it up with a search warrant and checked the home of Rodrigo Franco, 34. They found several other reptiles protected under US law.
Franco admitted to an agent from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that
he had previously received 20 king cobras in two other shipments, but
he said they all died in transit, according to court documents.
At least he didn't use the line that they were lost in a tragic boating accident. I wonder where they all ended up? Private collectors?
Thank goodness he didn't live in Florida, to add them to the released boas, anacondas, etc.
ReplyDeleteWhy do I have this feeling, there are probably some around here anyway, from someone else?
DeleteAll kidding aside, Florida has some serious issues with invasive species. There are dozens, some of which you wouldn't want to come across, like the five foot long Nile Monitor lizard. There's a small population of Elk over on the west coast!
The state Fish and Wildlife Commission is paying a bounty to try to kill off Lionfish and pythons.